Leonard Cohen

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Leonard Cohen's Kids: Dad's Ex-Manager Fiddled With Trust

Heirs say Robert Kory and his attorney swapped in forged paperwork after their father had died

(Newser) - Leonard Cohen died more than six years ago, at the age of 82, but the battle over his $48 million estate continues. It's the "Hallelujah" singer-songwriter's adult children, Adam Cohen and Lorca Cohen, versus his former manager, Robert Kory, who is the manager of Cohen's trust,...

Leonard Cohen's Estate 'Exploring Legal Options' Against RNC

Singer's estate is decidedly unhappy GOP used 'Hallelujah' against its wishes

(Newser) - The Republican National Convention trotted out Leonard Cohen's "Hallelujah," not once but twice after President Trump accepted his party's nomination—and the late singer's estate would like you to know that it definitely did not approve that message. As Vulture reports, the RNC used the...

Leonard Cohen's Cause of Death Revealed

Singer suffered a fall, then died in his sleep

(Newser) - Leonard Cohen's death at 82 was "sudden, unexpected" yet also "peaceful," according to his manager. In a statement to Cohencentric.com , Robert Kory says Cohen suffered a fall in the middle of the night and died in his sleep on Nov. 7— three days before the...

Leonard Cohen Now Rests 'Exactly as He'd Asked'

He was laid to rest before we even knew he died

(Newser) - Leonard Cohen now rests among his kinsmen, "exactly as he'd asked," wrote son Adam Cohen in a Facebook post late Saturday night. "My sister and I just buried my father in Montreal. With only immediate family and a few lifelong friends present, he was lowered into...

Chappelle, SNL Put Thoughtful Coda on Election

Kate McKinnon performs Leonard Cohen's 'Hallelujah' in character as Hillary Clinton

(Newser) - Saturday Night Live called on host Dave Chappelle's wit and Kate McKinnon's "Hallelujah" for a thoughtful coda to a divisive election, reports the AP . Chappelle, claiming to be rusty after a decade out of the TV spotlight, proved eager to offer his take on Donald Trump's...

Leonard Cohen's Famed Song Was Initially a Dud

'Hallelujah' for cover versions

(Newser) - Don't be surprised if you hear Leonard Cohen's Hallelujah dominating airwaves today as a tribute to the man described by some as the best songwriter who ever lived . But there's quite the story behind the song covered by more than 300 artists, including Rufus Wainwright, Willie Nelson,...

Music Great Leonard Cohen Dead at 82
Music Great
Leonard Cohen
Dead at 82
obituary

Music Great Leonard Cohen Dead at 82

RIP to one of music's 'visionaries'

(Newser) - Sad night in the music world: Leonard Cohen has died at age 82, according to an announcement on his Facebook page . "We have lost one of music’s most revered and prolific visionaries," it reads. A tribute at Rolling Stone agrees with that sentiment, saying that only Bob...

Leonard Cohen Profile Offers Rarity: Bob Dylan, Music Critic
Leonard Cohen Is
Putting His House in Order
in case you missed it

Leonard Cohen Is Putting His House in Order

'New Yorker' profiles 82-year-old

(Newser) - Leonard Cohen is 82 now, and fans will not be thrilled to learn in a lengthy New Yorker profile that he's almost certainly done touring—his body just isn't up to the rigors. But he's still making music, and an album out this month is classic Cohen...

Leonard Cohen Pens Touching Letter to His Dying Muse

She inspired 'So Long, Marianne'

(Newser) - "Know that I am so close behind you that if you stretch out your hand, I think you can reach mine." Those are among the last words Leonard Cohen wrote to the woman who inspired his songs So Long, Marianne and Bird on the Wire. Marianne Ihlen, known...

Leonard Cohen Turns 80, Starts Smoking Again

Singer picking up habit he kicked 30 years ago

(Newser) - Leonard Cohen turns 80 today, and he's marking his eighth decade by returning to a vice he gave up in his fifth: The "Hallelujah" scribe unabashedly says he's going to start smoking again, reports the San Francisco Chronicle . "Quite seriously, does anyone know where you can...

Inside the Weird Journey of Leonard Cohen's 'Hallelujah'

Cohen's own version isn't the definitive one

(Newser) - Unlike most songs that reside in the sort of unofficial Cover Song Hall of Fame, Leonard Cohen's "Hallelujah" was released to not much fanfare at all in the Born in the USA glory days of 1984. In fact, it was on the only Cohen album his record company...

Stories Behind the Songs: Billy Joel's 'Uptown Girl' About Elle MacPherson, Not Christie Brinkley
 'Uptown Girl': 
 Not Actually About 
 Christie Brinkley... 
AND OTHER SONG SECRETS

'Uptown Girl': Not Actually About Christie Brinkley...

And more sometimes surprising stories behind the songs

(Newser) - Inspired by Taylor Swift, who regularly pens songs about her real-life boyfriends , the New York Daily News lists six stories behind six classic songs. Most come from new book The Girl in the Song by Michael Heatley and Frank Hopkinson:
  • Billy Joel, “Uptown Girl”: Contrary to popular belief, this
...

Surprising Celebrity Buddhists
 Surprising Celebrity Buddhists 
plus keanu, orlando

Surprising Celebrity Buddhists

Tiger isn't the only big-shot who practices Buddhism

(Newser) - Tiger Woods shocked many by mentioning Buddhism in his televised mea culpa. "People probably don't realize it, but I was raised a Buddhist,” he said. "I drifted away from it in recent years." He's not the only big-shot Buddhist around, the Daily Beast notes. Here are...

Leonard Cohen Collapses in Spain

Canadian singer suffered from cramps, vomiting

(Newser) - Leonard Cohen collapsed onstage in Spain last night and was rushed to a hospital with stomach pain, the CBC reports. The 75-year-old singer, who fainted while singing "Bird on the Wire," suffered from stomach cramps and vomiting before losing consciousness. Cohen was released this morning and said he...

Please Stop Covering 'Hallelujah': Leonard Cohen

After 181 recorded versions, singer-songwriter thinks its time for a break

(Newser) - Leonard Cohen is tired of people covering “Hallelujah.” “I was reading a review of a movie called Watchmen that uses it, and the reviewer said, ‘Can we please have a moratorium on ‘Hallelujah’ in movies and television shows?’ and I kind of feel the same...

At Most Brit Funerals, Pop Music Plays You Out

(Newser) - Pop songs are handily beating out traditional hymns in England as the preferred soundtrack for the final goodbye, the Telegraph reports. A survey by a funeral-services company shows that 58% of funerals feature popular music as the top request, versus 35% for hymns; classical grabs just 7%. The top request?...

Ban-Busting Sir Paul to Play Tel Aviv

McCarthy will rock Israel 43 years after Beatles were barred

(Newser) - Paul McCartney will perform in Tel Aviv 43 years after the Beatles were banned by the Israeli government because officials feared their music would corrupt Israeli youth. The only fear today is that ticket prices for the September 25 concert in Park Hayarkon will be too expensive for most Israelis,...

9 Must-Have Cohen Classics
 9 Must-Have
 Cohen Classics 

9 Must-Have Cohen Classics

As icon heads out on tour, one man gives you 9 songs you must get on your iPod

(Newser) - "Adored by about a million fans and misunderstood by nearly everyone else," Leonard Cohen is set for his first tour in 15 years. So what better time to load up on "nine Cohen songs no self-respecting iPod should be without," writes Tim de Lisle in More...

Leonard Cohen to Tour
 Leonard Cohen to Tour 

Leonard Cohen to Tour

Gloomy balladeer hits road for first time in 15 years

(Newser) - The man Lou Reed called “one of the most important songwriters of our time” will hit the road this summer. Leonard Cohen, 73, will kick off his first tour in 15 years in his native Canada and then head to Europe, the Independent reports. So far, there are no...

Madonna Joins Rock Hall
Madonna Joins Rock Hall

Madonna Joins Rock Hall

Mellencamp, Cohen inducted as well

(Newser) - With a wink and a nod, Madonna became a Rock and Roll Hall of Famer last night, along with John Mellencamp and Leonard Cohen, Billboard reports. Madonna got top billing, with Justin Timberlake giving her an innuendo-laden induction speech, and Iggy and the Stooges performing punked-up covers of “Burning...

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